Phoenix (Grade 2) (BC)- $400.00 Purse
KEE- For Three Year Olds and Upward
Six Furlongs on the Dirt
October 2, 2026

We’re a month away from the BC being held right here at KEE, but before we get there we still have some business to take care of. The Phoenix provides an automatic starting spot into the BC Sprint, and a $400.00 to be split up between it’s top four finishers. It’s been held since 2004, and is personally a race I have fond memories of. Last year, it was another SRF writer that celebrated a Phoenix win as Threshold’s seven year old gelding Hollywood Cruiser got the job done. He’s still racing into his eight year old season but neither the horse or the trainer are back to defend their title. That hasn’t stopped the starting gate from getting full, with two horses (Schopenhauer and Mighty) who scratched in the Vosburgh at BEL last week heading here. Note that my rule of “if I see your horse two weeks in a row, I copy and paste your preview because there’s nothing new to say”, will apply. Here’s a look at this field!

1- Tony T (Rock Creek, ridden by E Jaramillo)- Tony T has had a nose for the winner’s circle, winning about half (11) of his 23 career starts. As good as that sounds, he’s a feast or famine type since he has only hit the board four other times. Unfortunately most of the races where he has not run as well have been in the graded stakes that he has tried. He had a near miss in the 2025 Grade 3 Nerud, but we’re mainly talking about a horse that succeeds in open allowances. Rock Creek picked him up in August, and got Tony T’s typical graded performance in the Vigil Stakes at WO. Can the Phoenix finally be his time?

2- Resurgent (D J C Racing Stables, ridden by F Pennington)- Looks to become resurgent with sprints after going long in his last four races. This includes two headliners at SAR where he was a strong third in the Grade 2 Dandy but unable to follow that up in the Travers a month later. He went seven here back in April in the $400.00 Lafayette where he was fifth, but didn’t beat anyone. Looks like a horse that’s better around a mile, so it’ll be interesting to see how the trainer approaches this from a tactical standpoint.

3- Star Vault (Mb Stables, ridden by J R Velazquez)- This gelding doesn’t need to go the win and you’re in route for the BC Sprint, as last month’s win in the Grade 1 Forego at SAR took care of that. In the Phoenix, he’ll be looking to establish himself as one of the favorites for the big race next month. The Forego is his only win of the year, but he also had a close call in his previous start, the Grade 2 Vanderbilt Handicap where Schopenhauer edged him out. Certainly a case of peaking at the right time.

4- Salah (Royalty Stables, ridden by L Machado)- Looking to have more success than his namesake, but with over $1,300.00 in career earnings, he may have already done so. Salah went into his last race hot, winning two in a row and also getting a massive victory at the Spa. That came in the prestigious Grade 1 Whitney, and earned him a spot in the BC Classic. But the trainer has gone a different route since then, running him in the $2,000.00 KD Turf Cup but found the grass tougher to deal with. That placement can be understandable to chase the purse, but I’m confused about this entry instead of a tune up for the Classic. Salah has the ability to win this, don’t get me wrong, and maybe the trainer simply feels more comfortable with the BC Sprint.

5- I Want It All (Luz International, ridden by A Achard)- The five year old gelding has been lightly raced this year, making just four starts. He’s won one of them, and was within a length in his three prior starts. When we last saw him, it was in the Forego at SAR, where only Star Vault was able to defeat him. Works very well, and we’ll see if his conservative race schedule pays off here. Other names are more well known in this field, but I Want It All has a strong track record of consistency and can rise to the occasion.

6- Edged Out (TwinTowersRacing, ridden by M J Sanchez)- While other horses in this field can say they were edged out in the races they did not win recently, that’s not true for Edged Out, himself. He hasn’t made a penny in any of his six starts this year, regularly finishing in the second half of the field. That has not led to the horse being dropped in class, and he even attempted the $1,750.00 KD Turf Sprint last time out. He was not a factor there, and unless the trainer has stumbled on something since then, he won’t be one here, either.

7- Archiduque (High Voltage, ridden by D E Centeno)- Picked up by the trainer for $150.00 last November, but has only been able to win once in the seven starts that have followed. That was a good looking wire to wire win at CD in an open allowance, but he did not build on that in the Grade 3 True North at SAR. Last time out, he battled PA-breds and was second in the $100.00 Storm Cat, and that will allow him this chance at redemption for the True North. Would he rather be going longer, though.

8- Schopenhauer (Maxmillion Farm, ridden by L J Luzzi)- There is no shortage of earnings with this horse, as Schopenhauer has made over $1,000.00 in his career. He’s consistent year after year, and comes here off a win in the Grade 2 Vanderbilt Handicap up at the Spa. The win was his second in five starts, and those victories are the only times he has hit the board this year. Mostly known for running long, Schopenhauer’s Vanderbilt performance was his first sprint in over a year and only his third in total. Maybe he’s found a new type of racing he can thrive in.

9- Teen Angel Party (Nakamura Stables, ridden by R Santana Jr)- She’s been a turf angel for the majority of her career, at least for about the last two years of it, anyway. Her schedule mostly consisted of open allowances or ungraded stakes and she was productive in those races. In June of last year, she scored her signature win in the Grade 3 Daytona Stakes. For her last race, Teen Angel Party was moved off the grass for an open allowance at PRX, finishing second to Street Magician. Yes, that’s the Street Magician who backed that up by winning Grade 2 Eddie D Stakes at SA last week. So, can Teen Angel Party follow that lead with the Phoenix?

10- Crypto King (Ire Iron Stables, ridden by A R Rodriguez)- Three weeks ago, I was able to cover the trainer’s first career graded win when Crypto King captured the Grade 3 Vigil Stakes at WO. It was an impressive effort, and this horse has looked particularly strong in three of his last four races, all coming at the graded level. Off of that win, there is no reason to think that the horse cannot follow that up by clinching the trainer’s first BC spot. His value has never been higher but should continue to rise.

11- Mighty (John Henry, ridden by A Beschizza)- Performed well in his prior barn, cashing checks in CA-bred stakes before cashing in a victory in the $200.00 St Matthews at CD in April. About five weeks later, he would be acquired by John Henry for $275.00 in private sales. His new trainer took his time with him, and Mighty would debut in his new silks for the Grade 1 Forego at SAR last month. That did not go well, but John Henry is plenty capable of making the needed adjustments from that start and making it a throw out.

12- Normandy (Spankys Barn, ridden by T Gaffalione)- We last saw Normandy in the Vigil Stakes at WO as well, where he went off as a 44/1 longshot. Previously, he had won a $50.00 claimer at SAR and did have some stake experience in the past, but it did not make the bettors feel good about his chances. He’d run in the middle of the field most of the way in the Vigil, but then found some late kick to get up for third. Typically consistent, and may be finding that he likes it more on the main track, as prior trainers mainly had him on the turf.

Prediction: 3-10-8-5

— NS

Categories: Grade II, STAKES ARTICLES